Pregnenolone – The Mother of all Steroid Hormones!

Pregnenolone is a naturally occurring metabolite that is made in your body. It is often referred to as the ‘mother steroid compound’ because it is the basic raw material for all steroid hormones in the body. This includes cortisone, Progesterone, estrogen, testosterone and DHEA.

Although it’s the precursor of all steroid hormones, Pregnenolone itself is not a steroid hormone. Instead, Pregnenolone is made from cholesterol in the cells of both the adrenal gland and the central nervous system. Inside each cell there are 1000’s of mitochondria (tiny power plants) and it is inside these mitochondria that Pregnenolone is produced.

Pregnenolone has been studied since the 1940’s. Experiments conducted in the 1940's and 1950's found Pregnenolone could not only increase the productivity levels and reduce the stress of factory workers, but was also an excellent anti-inflammatory medication for conditions such as arthritis and allergies.

Research into cortisol at around the same time resulted in Pregnenolone being somewhat over looked by the scientific community. This meant that despite having recognised health benefits, it did not become as popular as it might otherwise have been and its use medically was effectively phased out.

By the 1990’s interest in Pregnenolone had been rekindled when several experiments using mice, indicated that memory and stress might have significant links with the metabolite.

The chemical pathways that use Pregnenolone as the precursor in the production of steroid hormones and, indeed, the interrelationships between these hormones themselves, are complex. Optimal levels of Pregnenolone are important for mental health and ability. Sometimes it is the direct action of Pregnenolone that is beneficial, whereas in other situations the benefits of Pregnenolone flow not from the Pregnenolone itself but from the fact that it is has been used to produce other steroid hormones. Just how much Pregnenolone is used as Pregnenolone or is converted into other hormones depends on a number of factors, not least being your gender. Life-style issues such as diet, stress and exercise, as well as certain diseases and the stage of life that you are at also appear to be determining factors.

Age also plays its part. As we grow older, so the amount of Pregnenolone that we produce reduces. By age 70, Pregnenolone levels have typically declined by as much as 60%. Stress, depression, hypothyroidism and toxin exposure also lead to reduced levels. And with reducing levels, comes the need to supplement the body’s supply.

What is pregnenolone supplementation used for?

Although the actual way Pregnenolone works is not fully understood, using Pregnenolone as a supplement can have a number of effects. Pregnenolone appears to share many of its effects on the body with cortisol in that it can:

• Reduce allergic reactions
• Act as “a stress buffer”
• Lessen arthritis inflammation

However, whereas cortisol can have negative side effects, Pregnenolone is amazingly well tolerated. Pregnenolone is also known to enhance memory and improve mood and energy levels. Below we look at some of the benefits of Pregnenolone supplementation in more detail.

Memory Enhancement

It has long been reported that one of the leading benefits of Pregnenolone supplementation is the enhancement of memory, well in excess of the memory enhancing effects of other substances. Its role in memory enhancement appears to lie in its ability to assist in the acquisition of knowledge and the long term memory of learned behaviour and it does all of this at lower doses than those required by other steroids and steroid precursors such as DHEA. Indeed, in a clinical study carried out in 1995, Pregnenolone was shown to be a potent memory enhancer – possibly 100 times more effective than DHEA.

Fatigue Buster

As far back as the research that was carried out in the 1940’s, Pregnenolone was shown to have fatigue busting capabilities. Even a dose of 1mg a day can improve the quality of sleep and decrease intermittent wakefulness in otherwise healthy young individuals.

Energy levels are also boosted because Pregnenolone protects the energy producing mitochondria in our cells from potentially damaging toxins. This is because Pregnenolone enhances the activity of the cytochrome P450 detoxifying enzymes. These enzymes assist our cells, particularly those in the liver and the brain, to detoxify a whole range of toxins.

Stress Reliever

Pregnenolone may help to reduce your stress levels as it is thought that Pregnenolone may play a part in the neuro-endocrine response to stress. It may act to reduce the age-increasing effects of cortisol and induce a better state of relaxation.

Certainly clinical studies have shown clearly that Pregnenolone acts as a stress reliever. For example, research carried out in the 1940’s and 1950’s demonstrated that Pregnenolone reduced the stress of factory workers, with the added bonus of increased productivity. A study of aeroplane pilots subjected to stressful situations also revealed that 25mg of Pregnenolone taken twice a day improved performance without causing adverse side effects. In a study of the stress response in rats, the administration of Pregnenolone appeared to increase the animals’ anxiety. While you may think that this is not a good thing, the researchers suggested this was actually a beneficial response during a stressful period and was thought to have been initiated through the nervous system.

Anti Depressant and Mood Enhancer

Research has revealed that people currently suffering from depression or with a history of depression have significantly lower levels of Pregnenolone in the fluid around the brain than those found in healthy people. Indeed, those people with active depression were found to have lower levels of Pregnenolone than those with a history of depression. This shouldn’t be that surprising as steroid hormones (which are synthesized from Pregnenolone) are known to affect mood and behaviour via effects on the nervous system. Pregnenolone has proven itself to be both a mood enhancer and a mild anti-depressant.

Arthritis Treatment and the Treatment of other Rheumatological Diseases

Pregnenolone has been used since the 1940’s as an alternative to mainstream medications for the treatment of arthritis. Indeed, it is almost as synonymous with treating arthritis as cod liver oil.

Many arthritis sufferers find Pregnenolone particularly effective in treating the inflammation in their joints that they experience with the disease. Studies have confirmed the effects of Pregnenolone on arthritis. In one trial 6 out of 11 people suffering from rheumatoid arthritis experienced moderate to marked improvement in joint pain and mobility after receiving intramuscular injections of 50-600mg of Pregnenolone daily. In another study involving 13 osteoarthritis sufferers, Pregnenolone reduced pain and improved mobility in 7 of the patients. The pain reoccurred once the Pregnenolone therapy was stopped. Another study highlighted the substantial benefits of Pregnenolone therapy patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), psoriasis and scleroderma.

Women’s Health

Pregnenolone may offer many post-menopausal women a natural oestrogen replacement therapy. This is because Pregnenolone converts into DHEA which in turn converts into oestrogens. Pregnenolone can also provide a natural source for progesterone, another important hormone for female reproductive health, and one which is particularly useful in controlling PMS. The added advantage of Pregnenolone therapy when compared with DHEA treatment is that there is a reduced risk of experiencing distressing masculinizing side effects such as increasing facial hair because Pregnenolone is less likely to lead to an increase in testosterone levels.

Nerve Regeneration

Various parts of nerve cells are insulated by a membrane called the myelin sheath which acts to prevent “short circuiting” or the loss of neural transmission. Research involving mice has demonstrated that either Pregnenolone or progesterone supplementation promotes myelin formation during nerve regeneration. It maybe therefore that Pregnenolone therapy has a place in the treatment of diseases involving demyelination, such as multiple sclerosis.

So although the actions of Pregnenolone are not yet fully understood, it can be seen that its effects are far reaching. For many, the fact that it is a natural substance will be appealing. What is even more exciting is that Pregnenolone does not seem to have any negative side effects.

Dosage

Dosage is dependent upon the reason for taking Pregnenolone:

• For anti- ageing purposes - daily doses of about 25mg (maximum 50mg) are suggested
• For arthritis - daily doses should be in the region of 100mg to 300mg
• For senile dementia - daily doses of 300mg to 600mg
• For mood enhancement and as an anti depressant - daily doses of 50mg to 200mg
• For enhancement of detoxifying enzymes - daily doses of 25mg to 200mg per day

Caution and Warnings

Because Pregnenolone has antagonistic effects on what are known as GABA receptors in the central nervous system, Pregnenolone supplementation may cause problems in people with a history of seizures.

Pregnenolone can convert into any number of different metabolites and there isn't at present a definite way of ensuring the precise ones you want. Pregnenolone supplementation may therefore increase the levels of progesterone and DHEA and possibly levels of other hormones such as testosterone and estradiol. In our experience Pregnenolone is less likely to convert directly into testosterone than DHEA. Some testosterone may convert into estrogen. To help prevent this the use of an estrogen detoxification agent such as DIM with regular Pregnenolone use is recommended.

There were no well-known drug interactions with Pregnenolone.

Note:

Estradiol, Estrone, cortisol, DHEA and Testosterone levels can be monitored using the hormone test kit.